International TV Co-Editor
Comedian Bassem Youssef on the Israel-Gaza war, the Arab Spring and why we can't change the world
A year after Hamas’s attack on Israel left more than 1,200 dead and 251 captured, the Middle East conflict has moved to new fronts and is spiraling into new, more dangerous territory. For journalists on the ground, the threat is real: according to Reporters Without Borders, more than 130 Palestinian journalists have been killed since October 7. Meanwhile, the situation in Lebanon is deteriorating, with Israel bombing Hezbollah while the world awaits Israel’s response to Iran’s recent ballistic missile attack.
Channel 4 News Foreign Correspondent Secunder Kermani, who is currently in Tyre in southern Lebanon, told Deadline that reporters on the ground are aware of the threat to their safety from the Israeli military, which has issued warnings that civilians should not travel south of the strategically important Litani River in vehicles until further notice. In a BBC report yesterday, Orla Guerin wrote that Tyre has been left almost completely deserted following the airstrikes. She said it was vital not to speed and make yourself an unintended target when driving on the empty roads.
The conflict has so far claimed the lives of thousands of Lebanese, according to the country's Health Ministry, along with a number of Israeli soldiers, as reported by the Israel Defense Forces. "All journalists here are very aware of the tragically high number of Palestinian journalists killed in Israeli attacks," said Kermani, who is still in southern Lebanon.
